The Inspector General of the Royal Thai Police and the Director of the National Anti-Human Trafficking Center and the National Center for Prevention of Technological Crime, Major General Chatchai Chaijinda, stated that the Thai police's efforts to combat telecommunications fraud have begun to see results, with hundreds of victims rescued and successfully repatriated.
According to statistics from the Thai Immigration Bureau, recently, a large number of individuals of various nationalities have entered the country through the Mae Sot district border checkpoint in Tak province or through natural passages, many of whom do not have clear travel plans or accommodation arrangements. The police have initiated trace investigations on these individuals to confirm whether they have crossed the border and returned to Thailand.
Major General Chatchai Chaijinda noted that these cross-border individuals voluntarily left the country, and there have been no incidents within Thailand of victims being deceived into leaving the country. Some may have been deceived by job offers, mistakenly believing they could engage in legal employment. Those who went to Myawaddy in Myanmar, besides joining telecommunications fraud groups, might also be employed at entertainment venues, hotels, restaurants, or online gambling platforms.
He emphasized that the cases of people genuinely being tricked into working abroad are very rare, accounting for only about 1%, such as the previously exposed case of a Chinese celebrity being deceived. The rest went voluntarily.
Furthermore, the Thai police recently arrested four Japanese nationals. Although they had clear travel plans for Thailand, their behavior was suspicious, such as repeatedly carrying a single piece of luggage back and forth between Thailand and neighboring countries, and using unofficial passages for exit. Investigations revealed that they were connected to human trafficking organizations.
Major General Chatchai Chaijinda added that the victims of the telecommunications fraud groups are spread worldwide, usually deceived by compatriots first, who then use them to continue deceiving people of the same nationality. Thais mainly play the role of "nominee account" holders in these crimes, and those deceived into working abroad in fraud are more likely to go to Cambodia and Laos, rather than Myanmar.
In the future, the Thai government will strengthen border command center controls to ensure the smooth repatriation of victims. The Thai police also plan to hold an international conference on February 17 (Monday), inviting diplomats from various countries to discuss how to receive victims from their respective countries.
